Joined: 14 May 2004 Posts: 278 Location: Austin, TX
Posted: Sun Oct 14, 2007 1:05 pm Post subject: Scott answers your questions - round 37 - 10/14/07
Hi!
Sorry if you´ve answered this before but how did you meet john humphrey?
He´s one mean bassplayer. Love his relaxed attitude on stage. He looks like he couldn´t care less but he obviously does since he plays his ass off.
Take care
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I don't remember the exact time - it must have been around '80 when I was a student at GIT and he was there. We played together in Jean-Luc Ponty's band in the early '80's.
Looks like we are running out of questions to ask. Maybe we should dig
deeper.
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That's OK, I ran out of answers a long time ago.
Here's a little "out there" question... I have this little theory that good musicians are also good at math. For instance, John Scofield used to be a math teacher, if I remember correctly.
So do you have a talent for mathematics, Scott?
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No wonder I'm such a terrible musician.... I totally flunked out of math in 7th grade and barely made it out of high school because of it. I'm useless without a calculator.
I am also wondering what you think of the Marshall 1974x, a hand wired 18 watt EL-84 amp? I imagine it wouldn't be loud enough for you, but what about the tone? There are many amps out there these days very similar to it, so I figured you might have tried the 1974x or some amp that is more or less a clone of it.
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Not to sound like a snob, but I'm not much into any amps that aren't 100 watts. I don't even like the 50 watt Marshalls for lead. The reason is that the bass frequency is much lower and bigger sounding on 100 watt amps - the bass on smaller amps is more like low mid than real bass.
Hey Scott - I know you're probably sick of amp related questions, but given your great tone and your move to a single channel amp, I've got some questions which could help me with the sound(s) I'm looking for...
Currently you're sending your stomp boxes into what is basically a 70's Plexi amp. How is that amp set in terms of gain, tone, etc. What does the tone of the amp sound like with all front-end boxes turned off? Is that what you use for your clean sound, or do you roll back the volume to get a clean sound?
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I always have my boost pedal on for clean tones, but with the guitar volume rolled down - with one exception, when I do the volume swell chord thing ala Holdsworth where I need it super clean. Without the pedals, the amp is clean when the guitar volume is on 5, and really crunchy when the guitar volume is on 10.
For me, I've got to have a delicious, chimey clean sound, that I can spank without it clipping for funk, etc. I would also like to have a smooth lead sound which is legato friendly. It's almost impossible to find an affordable multi-channel amp which could accomplish both. I've gotten close with a Yamaha DG 80, but the clean sound isn't quite there - no chime / no spank
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Better get an OD100 Classic. That's the best amp made to do that.
In the "just out monetary reach category", there is the H&K Switchblade 50, Mesa F-30 (lead is smooth if you roll back the tone on the guitar), and the Mesa Roadster 112 - which is like $2000... (oh yeah, I want portability)
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I don't know those amps.
People are alway saying you can't get a single amp which can do it all, but if you've got the money, the amps are there.
Now that you've moved to a single channel amp, I thinking I should look for an affordable combo with a great clean sound (say, a Fender Hot Rod Deluxe), then then track down stomp boxes for crunch and solo sounds.
I've also thought about a Rocktron Chameleon or Voodu Valve into a power amp and then a 1x12 or 2x12 cab with V30(s).
I know in previous responses you've recommended an old Fender Deluxe or Super Reverb. Does the HRD suck in comparison? What distortion pedal would you recommend for into Fender amps for a Holdsworth type lead sound?
Sorry for all the questions...
Thanks, Pete
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To be blunt, most the amps you mentioned suck compared to an OD100 Classic. That's the best new amp out there - period. Michael Landau plays one - I don't think there's much more to say after that. Of course old Fender Deluxe's and Super's sound great too, but they're not as versatile. As far as pedals, the best one with humbuckers is the Maxon SD-9, with single coils, the Maxon VOP-9. That's the one I use.
Hy Scott!!
If It's possible...Can you tell me how your suhr guitar switch is wired? In particular for to have the tone bypass in 2 and 4 position of the switch....Is it a special switch? The cap is .022?
Thank You Scott!!!
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Here's a diagram of it, and yes, it's a special (much bigger) 5-way switch. The caps for single coils should be 473, .022 for humbuckers.
Any chance of getting Mysterious Traveler released on a cd? The verison in Detroit smoked!
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No, we won't record it cause I think Weather Report still played it the best. We learned it because we needed some extra instrumentals after we fired that guy that used to sing. It's one of my favorite tunes.
I too was at the Detroit Jazz fest and enjoyed the show immensely...
What a night for live music.
Three questions for you Scott:It seems you used only the treble pickup all night, Is that right?
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No, I was using all three, but probably the treble pickup the most.
Was it your gear (rented?) or the acoustics of that tall narrow boulevard... just curious..
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I brought all my gear except for the cabinet, which my friend Rich kindly let me use because it had Greenbacks.
2: Your noiseless PU's letting you down? Whatz up with that?
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We had terrible gear problems at that show. The first thing I did when I started hearing all this horrible noise was to pull the knob which disengages my noisless system, and there was just a small amount of hum from the pickups, so it wasn't an RF pickup related problem. It was more like a ground problem with the electricity. My Arion chorus which is always very quiet was hissing like crazy when I turned it on, and my RC Booster, another really quiet pedal, was totally freaking out, so I really have no idea what the problem was. We just tried our best to ignore it and play.
And 3: Did you stay for the show right after or have to get back on the road? Scofield, Modeski, Martin and Wood put on a professional funk jam clinic to close the evening out. Incredible, I was looking/hoping to see you out on the stage to blow scofield off it but...
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I stayed for about half of it and then went to hang with some friends I hadn't seen for a long time. I was kind of disappointed in the mix - I couldn't hear Sco well enough.
Thanks for coming. I think a lot of people saw you that night that normally wouldn't have. A few said "what the hell is that" and left but that let me move up a few seats...Better than playing for 300 guitar players at the magic Bag in ferndale (and a few girlfriends....) Always great to see you in Detroit!
Don Hicks
Hey Scott,
Do you think that given the fact that you mic the speaker right on the cone, and that you turn the amp up real bright and turn your tone knobs on your guitar way down low, that when people ask you for the exact settings on your pedals and stuff that those settings don't really translate to a more common setup?
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Absolutely. If you used my settings with the guitar tone on 10, you'd cut your brain in half. Also, I always turn down the treble on the PA and the monitors. I've compared micing the paper with the PA flat, but I much prefer micing the cone and cutting some highs on the PA.
Hi again. Just wondered if those "hidden tracks" on Tore down house(At the very end of "same as you") are the actuall countdowns.
Take care
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Believe it or not, that's how he really behaves in the studio. He was pissed off at us for putting that on the record, for obvious reasons.
Hey Scott, Just wondering if you have any plans for a new album or project?
Thanks,
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I'm working on song #4 for a new trio record. Sorry it's going so slowly, but I'm touring a lot, raising a 3 year old, and I'm also a bit of a procrastinator sometimes. The hardest part of composing is the application of the ass to the chair.
Hey Scott,
At this point in your career, do you find playing stuff on the more technical/structured side (like early Tribal Tech) less or more enjoyable than looser music with less structure?
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I still like to do both. In the trio there are some pretty structured things I have to play to serve the compositions and I still enjoy doing that. But there are also lots of loose sections that we can play differently every night, so in that group it's around 50/50. In Scott Kinsey's band, the music is really loose and I'm improvising 90% of the time. That gig is more about interaction with the other players, especially Kinsey.
Do you get to the point where just reading charts (e.g. your fun-filled years playing with Chick Corea and discussing the intriguing and factual works of L. Ron Hubbard while doing time as a "Volunteer Minister") becomes a bore?
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I played with Chick at the worst possible time in his career and that's always made me kind of sad. The only time I improvised in that band was when I was playing a solo, otherwise I was playing parts. That gets old real fast. Chick's played in lots of loose situations from Bitches Brew to many of his own more jazzy projects - I wish I could have played with him then. But that's OK, getting to play with the greatest improvising musician of all time, the late great Joe Zawinul more than made up for my being chained down in Chicks band. I believe Joe was the worlds greatest living musician, and it's really sad that he's gone. I can't even put into words how much I learned from him.
hey scott, few questions:
1. i (and many others it seems) cant find that blues book that you mentioned, i've asked hal leonard and they want me to put a request through my music store so they can inform HL about it so they can print it, but really what are the chances?? i think they need a few hundred request before printing it again....but i'll do that anyway, who knows......can you maybe pressure them?? or is it out of your control? you got a spare copy i can buy??
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I talked to them about it the other day - they're almost finished with the transcription work but the artwork isn't started yet so I'd say it'll probably come out early next year.
2. what sort of mic do you use when live? I'm using Suhr badger (finally got it!!! what a beast!!!) with 2x12 greenbacks.....i've been told either SM57 or Sennheiser E906 is good, whats your recommendation?? does condensor or cardiod type matters?
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57
3. you mention something about playing "floating" with the timing...or something like that....care to explain more? maybe an example from one of shorter solo?
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"Floating"is just a term which means playing rubato. That's when you play phrases that aren't associated with the time grid of the song. Wayne does it in just about every one of his solos, as do most blues players.
4. whats your favorite albert king's album?? the first one that got you thinking "i gotta be able to do that" kind of thing??
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"Mean, Mean Blues"
5. so you dont use BB anymore....and using the precission overdrive....any reason? dont tell me you dont even you the precission od anymore!!! lol...
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I like the Precision Overdrive and find it really nice for some things, but live I'm using Maxon's new VOP-9, which sounds like an SD-9 with a different midrange frequency that makes single coils sound huge. In my opinion the Precision and the SD-9 sound best with humbuckers.
jazz world just lost the great joe zawinul......you're one of the lucky person to be able to play with him....just earlier this year we lost michael brecker.....two great loss in a year!!!! anyway scott, keep healthy ok!! I want to be able to see you live one day!!!! Not just from DVD (hint...hint....its coming right??) if youre not coming to OZ then I'll come over there!!!
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Kinsey was talking about a tour there in November but the money was really weak, so I don't think it's gonna happen. So have a nice flight!
Hi Scott.
As you certainly know, your buddy Mike Landau has been playing a few gigs with Robben Ford lately.
Is there any chance that someday you could join forces with Robben as well, as he is also doing with Larry Carlton ? I think that your styles would complement each other very well. By the way , have you already played together ?
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We used to play once in awhile when he taught at GIT. Robben plays great but I don't have time for those kind of projects - it's difficult enough finding time to write music for my own band.
'd like to ask, what kind of observations you made that finally you know that d-neck profile is best for you, is the neck profile importand to the sound of the guitar? how much the profile of the neck is importand toyou? or it's just about a comfort?
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That's a good question. Definitely the neck is an important factor in the guitar's tone. If you take only the neck and put one tuner on it, hold the neck up by the tuner and hit the back of the neck, it'll make a low note. I've noticed that even necks made from the same kind of wood and the same fretboard make different notes when struck. One guy I know says that the lower the tone of the neck, the better the guitar sounds, but I haven't seen any proof of that. For me the shape of the neck is just a comfort thing, but I sometimes wonder if I used one of those super fat necks, would it give the guitar a better tone. I'll never know cause I couldn't play shit on one of those, my hands are too small. Jeff Beck gets a great tone and he plays a fat neck so maybe that's part of his sound.
Hi Scott! I`m Luciano from Argentina.
Looking for videos (-subliminal message: release a DVD-), I´ve found something called "Elektric city" (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zikTA3dYOKQ). Man, I laughed my ass! Those guys dancing around, Chick watching everything through that monitor, your duel with Chick at the end, etc, etc, etc. It´s seem that you (nice outfit by the way) were laughing at the beginning like thinking "WTF am I doing here?!?!?". Any comment about that?
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I was young, I needed the money. Thank goodness that whole experience was quite short.
I went to your Cordoba show in Argentina last november. A 9volt (AC) wallwart went down about the 2nd tune. It was burning like hell and you threw it to the crowd. Do you remember?
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Yeah, I finally figured out what was causing that problem which would happen sometimes when using 220 to 110 transformers. No more wall warts catching on fire.
Then after the show you went down and stared talking to us. I tell you that theater was burned down one month after the show.
I have some of your videos and books and they are great. I want to ask you:
On Melodic Phrasing video, when tunning at the beginning, you hit every string twice except the 5th and 6th. Why?? (Nooo just kidding...)
Now seriously. I wonder if after all these years you still think the same about all the concepts you talk about on the video or if you would like to change something about that. I´ve found this video extremely useful, especially the part where you make parallels between music and language.
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The only thing I would change is my hair style.
What about that blues book you talk about, unavailable yet or what?
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Answered above.
Last question: in previous post you mentioned Theodore Rubin's book "Compassion and Self Hate". I have read "Free Play" and others and I want to know what do you think about this "philosophy of music". Do you think it is a bunch of crap or something important to pay attention to? Maybe here you find answers to some issues like being nervous when performing, being afraid to sound bad and all those things.
Ok man, thank a lot and sorry for my crappy english.
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I haven't read "Free Play", but I've read "Effortless Mastery" by Kenny Werner and thought it was good. All those books basically say the same thing, and people who have natural confidence in themselves don't need to read them. The main point those books make is a simple one - if you're nervous because you care too much about the outcome of whatever you're doing, you're bound to fuck it up. It's more important to simply enjoy what you do than to think about reaping the rewards for it. I've said this before but it bears repeating - DON'T EVER PERFORM!! When you think of what you're doing as a performance, in music you'll make lots of mistakes, in medicine you'll probably kill somebody, and in sex your dick won't work.
Instead of performing, just participate. When you participate in something, you're doing it just for the joy of doing it, not because you're trying to impress someone or get compliments. Being lucky enough to do something you love is enough. And if you get paid for it too, that's really lucky. You have to play as though you have nothing to prove to anyone, otherwise playing isn't fun, it's just stressful. The most creative stuff happens when you're the least nervous, and for some people that's a difficult state of mind to get to, especially on stage. A lot of great musicians attained that state of mind with drugs and alcohol, but I think with practice you can do it with your mind by just learning to relax. Personally, exercise helps keep my body relaxed, and humor and jokes relax my mind. I'm just at the gig to have a good time playing music and watch the babes, if there are any.
Hi!
another gear question:
You said that you are using doubled screwed SD 59. but i cant find it enywhere. there are no any informations about double screws. What is the exactly model of theese Seymours? maybe they don't make it anymore?
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I haven't used that pickup in many years but it's a special order pickup from Duncan. They call it the '59 double-screw. It's smoother sounding than single screw humbuckers but it has very little bass.
and did you ever tried Roland Gr-300 synth (the one Pat Metheny use) or do like Pat sound with roland
Regards and thanks for all your music !
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I'm really not into guitar synths at all.
Hey Scott,
I have a question about the MINIMIX made by Suhr.I would like to you use it but i don't know where to plug it in my gear.
My guitar goes in a GT8 (the preamp is bypassed, i'm using only reverbs, delays..).I got 3 distortion pedals (2 radial tonebone and 1 fulltone) plugged in the effect loop of the GT8.And both outs of the GT8 goes to the front input of my 2 ENGL combos.(stereo)
Both "returns" of the amps are used for the VG8.
Where do you think the MINIMIX should be?
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I can't specifically answer your question because I don't know what a GT8 is. You plug the amp FX send into the input of the mixer, and the mixer's output back into the amp FX return. The mono effect is plugged into the mixer's send and return. All the effect patches are set to 100% wet, since the dry sound is being directly passed from the amp's send to the amp's return. Adjust the volume of the reverb, delay, or whatever on the patch's master volume.
I know digital guitar effects aren't your thing, but have you gotten a chance to check out Roland's VG-99?
Thoughts?
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No, just not interested in that stuff.
scott, how many suhr guitar do you have now? and whats your no 1?
do you still use V60LP pu? or do you use the new suhr FL? what about your kinman and dimarzio?
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I have 5 Suhr guitars, 4 with FL pickups and one with V60's. One FL guitar has a maple neck and the other 4 are rosewood. One of the FL guitars has a Suhr humbucker in the treble position, so they all sound a little different. With John's noiseless system, I don't need to use the Dimarzio's or Kinman's anymore. I have two no 1's, which sound almost the same. The fiesta red one has .011's which I tune to Eb and use in the blues trio. The seafoam one I tune to E and use in Kinsey's band and for teaching.
hey scott, you ever tried the "flying dragon boost" from lizard leg? it supposed to be very transparant......can you give me a review of it if you have?
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Sorry, haven't heard it.
Scott,
Apologies if this has been addressed before, although I did a search and came up pretty blank.
Can you address how much time daily you dedicated to practice during various stages of your career? You mentioned back in the day you had a "romance" with technique and now you don't really concentrate on that as much as playing "the right notes." You've also mentioned you don't practice while on the road.
When you were doing the early Tech stuff/MIT/Chick/Ponty session stuff, mid Tech stuff, vs. now, how did you approach practicing?
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Back in those days I was playing music that was considered difficult, though not difficult at all by todays standards. I practiced a lot - sometimes 8 hours a day, sometimes 2 or 3 - whatever I could squeeze in with all the normal stuff of the day. I transcribed and practiced what most guys do - all the various types of chords, scales, chord tones and lines, but the main focus of my practicing has always been, and still is today, on the music that I'm currently playing on stage. I never practiced on my technique for technique's sake, but there were lines I had to learn that were fast and difficult, so whatever technique I got just came from practicing for the gig. These days I don't write a lot of difficult to play music - I just want to improvise cool phrases with the best possible note choices and tone, so that's where my focus is whether it's an 8 hour practice day or a half hour. And about the road, I don't practice much because I never have time, not because I don't want to.
And having played with/hung many a great musician (Zawinul, Willis, Corea/Elek band, Ponty, Holdsworth, Smith, Kinsey) is there any advice on practicing/schedules that you heard them espouse that come to mind?
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Not really. Pro musicians talk about gear, sports, who's put out the best and worst records lately, and chicks. Except Scientologists - they talk about their evil plans to control the world.
And having played with/hung many a great musician (Zawinul, Willis, Corea/Elek band, Ponty, Holdsworth, Smith, Kinsey) is there any advice on practicing/schedules that you heard them espouse that come to mind?
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Not really. Pro musicians talk about gear, sports, who's put out the best and worst records lately, and chicks. Except Scientologists - they talk about their evil plans to control the world.
Oh yeah, and is there any way to get the "Players" album without paying some asshole 50 bucks on Ebay? Lavitz said that was the way to go. Ugh.
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Just send me 15 bucks, a blank CD, and a self addressed and postage paid envelope to Musicians Institute and I'll burn you a copy.
Hi Scott,
I Graduated from Florida Atlantic University in 2000 (Degree in Music - GUITAR). I was wondering what your experience was like at F.A.U.???
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I had a good time there, even though back then it wasn't a guitar oriented jazz program. I studied improv, composition, and arranging from two great teachers - Bill Prince and Chuck Marhonic, so I felt very fortunate to study with those guys.
My instructor there (Applied Lessons) was an early student of yours (Charles Carey 1984-1986). Do you have any recolection of Charles???
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Sorry, I can't even remember the names of my current students.
I'd love to continue playing guitar for a living, but the session work can be quite a sanguinary profession - do you have any advise or words of encouragement for me on how to continue playing for a living???
Cheers . . .
Ian C.T. vom Saal
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Yeah, just hang in there, keep practicing and become better than the other guys. I had to look up the word sanguinary, so I guess that means you're dealing with cut-throat competition, which is normal in that business. My advice to you would be to also play in a band just for fun, doing your original tunes or whatever music makes you happy. Your music should serve art, not just industry.
Joined: 14 May 2004 Posts: 278 Location: Austin, TX
Posted: Sun Oct 14, 2007 7:44 pm Post subject:
more.....
Hi Scott,
I Graduated from Florida Atlantic University in 2000 (Degree in Music - GUITAR). I was wondering what your experience was like at F.A.U.???
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I had a good time there, even though back then it wasn't a guitar oriented jazz program. I studied improv, composition, and arranging from two great teachers - Bill Prince and Chuck Marhonic, so I felt very fortunate to study with those guys.
My instructor there (Applied Lessons) was an early student of yours (Charles Carey 1984-1986). Do you have any recolection of Charles???
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Sorry, I can't even remember the names of my current students.
I'd love to continue playing guitar for a living, but the session work can be quite a sanguinary profession - do you have any advise or words of encouragement for me on how to continue playing for a living???
Cheers . . .
Ian C.T. vom Saal
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Yeah, just hang in there, keep practicing and become better than the other guys. I had to look up the word sanguinary, so I guess that means you're dealing with cut-throat competition, which is normal in that business. My advice to you would be to also play in a band just for fun, doing your original tunes or whatever music makes you happy. Your music should serve art, not just industry.
Scott,
How important is it for a guitarist/musician to know piano/keyboards
for composing/arranging,
Did you learn piano/keys in your early years when you were studying
composition?
If yes then how did you manage to get a hold on both the instruments,cause anyways being a good jazz guitarist is challenging enough.
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